How Do You Know If Your Horse Loves You?
How do animals show affection? If you’ve ever wondered if your horse loves you, this is the article you should read.
When we decide to adopt a horse, we want to quickly establish a bond based on friendship and mutual trust.
But there are also many owners who wonder how they can tell if their horse loves them. And how horses express their affection.
Body language and gestures of affection
Horse owners know how intelligent these animals are and that they have the ability to treat people and other animals with great empathy. But still you might be wondering how exactly you can tell whether your horse really loves you. How do you know that a supervisor or rider really likes it?
To answer this question, the first thing you need to know is that horses communicate primarily through their body language.
Although they can make a wide range of sounds, these animals express their feelings, perceptions, and moods primarily through their posture, movements, and facial expressions.
Their demonstrations of affection for their supervisors and riders are of course not verbalized like ours. So if you want to know if your horse loves you, you have to watch it closely and correctly interpret the signals from its body.
Your horse understands your body language
For us humans it can be very complex to understand the full potential and diversity of body language. This is because we prioritize verbal communication in our relationships. That is, we mostly express ourselves through words.
However, our body is also a means of communication and we use it constantly, albeit unconsciously, to express ourselves. For this reason, animals often easily perceive our moods such as fear, joy or anger without us putting them into words.
So remember that body language is also part of communication between people. Although many forget, we express ourselves not only with words, but also through actions, gestures, our posture, looks, etc.
So your body speaks to your horse and , thanks to your gestures and actions, it will understand much better that you love it than through your commands during dressage.
Therefore, we also need to pay attention to our body language in order to express our affection and to improve our bond with our horses.
Tips to know if your horse loves you
Now you know that horses express their affections through their body language. Therefore, we want to take a closer look at this language and tell you which clues you can use to tell whether your horse loves you.
Here are 3 tips to help you better interpret your horse’s body language.
Watch his ears
Horses’ ears are a key element in their non-verbal communication. If you observe the behavior of horses, you will see that they can use their ears to make different movements and take different positions.
And every movement conveys a message and a mood.
Therefore, you should learn to observe and interpret the movements and positions of his ears.
If your horse’s ears are loose and relaxed around you, this is an excellent sign that he is comfortable in your company.
If your horse moves his ears back slightly while riding, this is also a very positive sign. This means that the animal is focused and paying close attention to what the rider is trying to convey to him.
Also, we can highlight the following positions of the ears:
- Flattened and Backward Ears: It is important to be careful as this indicates that the horse may make sudden and unexpected movements.
- The ears hang on either side of the head: this indicates that the horse is feeling tired or bored.
- Ears upright and pointing forward : The horse is very attentive and may react to unusual environmental stimuli.
Pay attention to the position of his head and neck
The movements and positions of a horse’s head and neck also say a lot about its state of mind.
If your horse hangs his head and neck slightly in your presence , it means that he is happy and enjoying being with you.
It is also possible for your horse to show its excitement and emotions by stretching its head and neck up when looking at you. Without a doubt, that is also a good sign.
Interpret the movements of his tail
The horse’s tail also tells you a lot about its emotions and how it perceives its surroundings.
Like dogs, horses usually wedge their tails between their legs when they are scared. Or want to express their submission to another person.
However, if its tail is erect, it means your horse is happy or excited.
Remember: a straightened tail, slightly drooping lips, and ears pointing slightly back are excellent signs. Everything indicates that your horse loves you and enjoys your company.
